Milan prosecutor to rule on Iranian's fate amid row over journalist held in Iran

“One of the reasons that has led us to consider changing the capital is the imbalance between resources and expenditures in Tehran,” he said in a meeting with representatives from the central region of Semnan.

Tehran, home to over 9 million residents, has long struggled with overpopulation, traffic congestion, air pollution, and resource mismanagement. Pezeshkian argued that moving the capital closer to the Persian Gulf would streamline economic operations.

“Transporting raw materials from the south to the center, processing them, and then returning them south for export drains our competitive capacity. We must shift the country’s economic and political center to the south and closer to the sea,” he said.

Previous Iranian administrations have explored various iterations of the idea. However, financial constraints and political inertia have consistently stalled progress.

It gained traction during the presidency of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, mainly over concerns about Tehran’s vulnerability to earthquakes. President Hassan Rouhani revisited it in the mid-2010s, citing the city’s unsustainable growth and environmental challenges.

Relocating the capital would require massive investment and pose logistical challenges, while potentially harming Tehran’s economy. It seems unlikely, therefore, that Pezeshkian follows his remarks with actions that his predecessors avoided in less challenging times.

The funds are crucial to boost gas production to meet targets set by Iran's long-term development plan, which on paper inform budgets and industrial policies.

"According to the Seventh Development Plan, gas production must reach 1 billion and 380 million cubic meters per day by the end of the plan," Paknejad said. "To achieve this goal, $45 billion of investment is required."

The majority of this funding, he explained, must be directed towards developing gas fields and upgrading related infrastructure.

Successive Irani governments have struggled to meet soaring consumption, especially during colder months when power plants are forced to burn polluting fuels that compound the problem of air quality in urban areas.

Iran possesses vast reserves of natural gas, but rising domestic demand and lack of investment to maintain and expand the infrastructure means the country is often a net-importer of energy.

Paknejad outlined a two-pronged approach to tackle the crisis, emphasizing the urgent need for substantial investment as well as consumption management.

"More important than increasing production is managing demand and optimizing consumption," he said, emphasizing the need for greater efficiency in domestic gas usage.

Over 860 million cubic meters of processed natural gas (sweet gas) are delivered to Iran's national grid daily, the oil minister said, more than three-quarters of which is taken up by households, businesses, and small industries.

The government has called on Iranians to limit their use, but seem reluctant to press harder on the issue, mindful of the widespread discontent in the country.

Iran's oil minister alluded to this reality, while suggesting that resource management and optimization lagged behind production growth.

"Any reform in the energy consumption system should be accompanied by considering the living conditions of the people," Paknejad said.

As of December 30, Armenian border guards have replaced Russian personnel who managed the checkpoint for over three decades.

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced the transition on his official Facebook page, acknowledging the service of Russian border guards and extending his wishes to the Armenian forces now in charge.

“From today on, border control is carried out only by the officers of the Republic of Armenia Border Guard Forces at the Agarak border crossing point of Armenia-Iran state border. Until now, since Armenia's independence, border control was carried out by the Russian Federation Border Guard troops officers at Agarak crossing point, and I want to thank them for their service. And I wish success and good service to our border guards who have taken over border control from today,” Pashinyan said as reported by the Newsweek.

The decision follows an agreement between Pashinyan and Russian President Vladimir Putin during an October 8 meeting. As part of the arrangement, Armenian forces will also begin managing border security with Turkey and Iran from January 1, 2025.

The move is part of broader changes in Armenia-Russia relations, which include the withdrawal of Russian guards from Zvartnots International Airport and other border locations.

Armenia’s decision to assume greater responsibility for its borders comes amid shifting alliances and a reevaluation of its reliance on Moscow, particularly after Russia’s limited response to recent conflicts involving Armenia and Azerbaijan.

In March, Yerevan called for the withdrawal of Russian guards from key locations, citing heightened tensions with its traditional ally.

The transition also reflects broader geopolitical currents. Armenia’s ties with Iran, a key regional ally, remain strong, with cooperation in energy and trade bolstering relations. The two nations share a 44-kilometer border, and Iran views Armenia as a strategic counterbalance to Azerbaijan and Turkey.

Tehran has consistently emphasized its interest in maintaining stability along its northern border, where regional conflicts often intersect with ethnic and religious divisions.

The decision has drawn criticism from Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which warned that the shift could undermine Armenia’s security and economic stability. Despite these warnings, Armenian officials maintain that the change represents a step toward greater sovereignty.

The evolving dynamics in the South Caucasus suggest continued realignment. Armenia’s recalibration of its defense and foreign policy could have lasting implications, particularly as it navigates tensions with Azerbaijan and manages its alliances with Iran and the broader international community.

Qasem Soleimani was killed in a US drone strike near Baghdad International Airport in January 2020, a move Trump openly acknowledged ordering.

Brigadier General Iraj Masjedi, Deputy Coordinator of the Quds Force, denounced the operation, which also claimed the life of Iraqi militia leader Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, as a violation of international law.

“In my opinion, Trump has rendered the greatest service to the terrorist movement in the world, and he must pay for this pure blood,” Masjedi said on Wednesday on the death anniversary of Soleimani. He questioned the legal and moral grounds of the assassination, calling Soleimani “the main agent in the fight against terrorists.”

The US justified the strike by saying Soleimani was planning imminent attacks on American interests in the region. However, his death escalated tensions between Washington and Tehran, leading to Iranian missile strikes on US military bases in Iraq.

“America must leave the region”

Brigadier General Mohammadreza Naqdi, Deputy Coordinator of the IRGC, also called for the expulsion of US forces from the Middle East, describing the Ayn al-Asad missile strike in 2020 as a decisive statement of intent.

“The world understood how powerful the Islamic Republic is and how weakened America has become,” Naqdi said during an appearance on Iranian state television. However, he added, “America has not yet received its full answer.”

The Ayn al-Asad missile strike occurred on January 8, 2020, as a direct retaliation by Iran for Soleimani's killing. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) launched over a dozen ballistic missiles targeting the airbase in Iraq, which housed US and coalition forces. Another strike targeted a base near Erbil. This marked the first direct Iranian attack on US forces in decades and was one of the most significant escalations in US-Iran tensions.

The strike resulted in no immediate fatalities among US personnel, reportedly due to early warnings and evacuations.

Iran; however, portrayed the attack as a demonstration of its military capability and resolve.

Naqdi also defended Iran’s extensive role in the Syrian conflict, where Soleimani played a pivotal part in mobilizing Shi’a militias to support President Bashar al-Assad.

“Our presence in Syria was the most rational decision, as we sought to remove a significant threat to the Islamic Ummah,” Naqdi added, referring to Iran’s fight against ISIS.

Brigadier General Asghar Arabpour from Isfahan province also urged Iranian leaders to intensify efforts to hold Trump accountable.

“Addressing this case and Trump’s crimes requires greater seriousness from our country’s officials,” Arabpour said in an interview with ISNA.

He also criticized the broader US foreign policy under both Trump and President Joe Biden, arguing that American administrations prioritize Israeli security at the expense of Middle Eastern stability.

Five years after Soleimani’s targeted killing, Iran officials occasionally speak of revenge, keeping his death a cornerstone of their rhetoric against the United States.

Alamolhoda made the allegations during a meeting in Mashhad with members of the parliament’s Basij on Tuesday.

The Basij is a paramilitary volunteer force under the command of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) that maintains a presence within nearly all Iranian state bodies, including the parliament.

He said that foreign intelligence agencies do not directly send spies into the parliament. Instead, he alleged, they identify lawmakers whose views align with their own and then recruit them through intermediaries.

"In the Islamic Consultative Assembly, people with different ideas and viewpoints enter," Alamolhoda said. "The enemy comes and evaluates these people to see which ones are close to their goals, and then recruits them through several intermediaries."